The Copy of A Memory
by Fatin Adolfina
Summary: Before the Final Duel between himself and the Pharaoh, Yugi discovers something in one of the pharaoh's rooms, more specifically, someone.


**Round 2 of Season 9.75**

**Thief King Bakura x Yami no Yuugi**

* * *

_/Pharaoh? /_

The pharaoh jumped at hearing Yugi's voice through their link.

_\Yugi, is something wrong? \_ the concern was evident in his voice.

The pharaoh set his cards down and flipped them, showing their backs to him as he listened to Yugi laugh nervously.

_/Um… I think I might have gone too far into your mind. I'm in this weird room and I can't seem to find my way out. /_

The pharaoh sighed, even laughed a little at Yugi.

_/Hey, don't laugh! You know your head better than I do! /_

_\Technically, it's your head. \_

The pharaoh can just imagine Yugi blushing from embarrassment, a mile made its way to his lips before he could stop himself.

_/Well, would you mind getting me out of here? /_

_\Of course, wait one moment.\_

The pharaoh left the room and went into the bathroom connected to his room and closed the door. It wasn't that he did not trust Yugi; he just did not want to show Yugi his progress of completing his deck for their duel tomorrow. He held the Millennium Puzzle in his hands, closed his eyes and called Yugi back into his body. In a flash of light, Yugi was returned to his body and the pharaoh materialized as a spirit next to him. Yugi opened his eyes and smiled at the pharaoh.

"Thanks, pharaoh." Yugi said.

_\You're welcome, but do be careful. Our mind is a very dangerous place.\_

Yugi blushed and nodded his head, turning away from the pharaoh.

_\Yugi?\_

Yugi kept his back to the pharaoh and twiddled with his fingers, unsure of how to bring up what he saw.

_\Yugi, are you okay? \_

"Pharaoh, are you gay?"

Silence fell upon them. Yugi's blushed increased and he turned around to face the pharaoh again.

"I'm sorry, that wasn't the right question!"

_\It's alright Yugi, but your question is indeed a strange one. Why do you ask? \_

If Yugi could blush anymore, he would. The pharaoh would have laughed if Yugi already didn't look so uncomfortable.

"Well, I… think I went into one of your rooms, and I saw a big bed, so I thought I was in your room. I was going to sleep in it so time would go faster, but then, out of no where; Bakura came out and attacked me and had a sword at my throat! Then he started to… to touch me and—"

_\Calm down, Yugi. Did he hurt you? \_

Yugi shook his head and lowered his eyes, "No, but… he thought I was you."

The pharaoh nodded, _\I see.\_

They fell silent again, Yugi because he was too uncomfortable to speak, and the pharaoh because he didn't know what to say to the poor boy.

"Y-you know, it's okay if you are; I won't hate you. I'm just a little shocked, is all. I mean, I thought that you liked Tea—"

_\Tea is a beautiful girl, but I only see her as a friend. I always thought you liked her, so I tried to encourage her to—\_

"What?! Pharaoh, how could you?" Yugi complained, almost wishing he could hit his companion.

The pharaoh laughed at Yugi's whining, he would miss this when he was gone. Yugi smiled as the pharaoh laughed, his blush slowly fading as he waited for him to stop.

"So, I hope you don't mind me asking, but why is Bakura in one of your rooms?" Yugi asked.

The pharaoh's smile turned slightly sad, maybe even a bit regretful, as he gave his response to Yugi.

_\Because I love him.\_

"Oh, I see… wait, what?"

_\I said I love him Yugi.\_

To say Yugi was shocked was, well, almost an understatement; there have been times when two mortal enemies fall in love with each other, but seriously, Bakura and THE PHARAOH?!

_\Well, to make it clear, that was not Bakura.\_

Yugi frowned, "How so? I mean, he looked like he did 5000 years in the past, but it was still Bakura, wasn't it?"

_\No, what you saw of Bakura was a pawn in a game. What you saw in one of my rooms was a memory of the Thief King Bakura, but that was not Bakura.\_

"I don't get it. How can it be Bakura without being Bakura?"

The pharaoh sighed, \Well Yugi, the Thief King is Bakura but at the same time, he isn't. The Thief King and I were enemies, but when I was sealed into the puzzle, I believe that I created a copy of the Thief King. During my time in the puzzle, I was together with that copy, not knowing who he was or what he was to me. So for the 5000 years that I was in the puzzle, I bonded with that copy, and eventually, I fell in love with that copy.\

Yugi smiled, "That's wonderful, but I still don't get how that isn't Bakura."

The pharaoh frowned, _\The spirit of the ring is Zork, the one you call Bakura, that isn't Ryou Bakura, is Zork.\_

"Oh, I see."

Yugi dropped his head again, his mind processing what the pharaoh has told him.

_\Is there anything else on your mind, Yugi? \_

"You have a reason to lose the duel tomorrow." Yugi almost whispered.

The pharaoh blinked, _\Excuse me? \_

"If you lose the duel tomorrow, then you can go to the after life and you can be with the Thief King, right?"

Yugi almost looked happy, but the look of sadness and disappointment in his eyes showed that he did not approve of the pharaoh's plan.

_\Actually Yugi, it's quiet the opposite.\_

Yugi looked at the pharaoh in shock, and the pharaoh wore a sad smiled.

_\You forget, Yugi, that I fell in love with a **copy, **the real Thief King hates me because he died believing that my father order the massacre of his village to make the Millennium Items. The **real** Thief King could never be what I want him to be.\_

Yugi's face fell, ashamed of thinking the pharaoh would be so… desperate.

_\But I do have a reason to stay.\_

Yugi felt the pharaoh's ghostly hand touch his shoulder. Yugi looked at him again and the pharaoh's sad smile turned into one of determination.

_\If I am gone, my Thief King would disappear along with my space in your mind. If I am to leave, the only person I have ever loved would no longer exist. I could not bare that, Yugi, so I will not lose our duel, at least, not on purpose.\_

Yugi almost felt guilty, to be the one to separate someone from their lover, their _soul mate,_ would be horrible, but would it be better to keep someone from crossing over to the afterlife like they have deserved for 5000 years?

_\Yugi, I ask of you to not let this information affect the duel. I will not be happy nor satisfied knowing that you let me win so I could stay. I need to know if I'm ready to move on, I won't know if you don't give your all tomorrow.\_

Yugi still felt guilty, but he understood how the pharaoh felt. With the same determined look as the pharaoh's, Yugi nodded and allowed the pharaoh control of his body again.

"Thank you, Yugi." The pharaoh said as he left the bathroom to finish constructing his deck.

* * *

In the puzzle Yugi returned to the room with the Thief King, wearing nothing but what Yugi thought was a skirt and gold jewelry, with his arms crossed as he sat on the giant bed.

"So, what did he say?"

"He said not to let this information interfere with the duel and that he wants me to give it my all tomorrow."

The Thief King smirk, "Good, it's about time he left anyway. I would have killed him myself if he used me as an excuse to stay."

Yugi tried not to let on that the pharaoh _did _say that, he wouldn't want to get the pharaoh in trouble with his lover.

The Thief King got off the bed, walked over to Yugi and patted him on the head, "Good job, kid."

Yugi pouted, he hated being called a kid.

"Was it really necessary for me to ask the pharaoh those questions?"

"Yes, you had to know, but you had to know it from him or else you wouldn't believe it to be true."

"But won't you be sad that he's gone?"

"Of course, but I won't last enough to be able to _be _sad."

Yugi lowered his head to the ground, unsure of what to say.

"But that's for the best, I'll go back to being what I was meant to be, a memory."

The Thief King removed his hand from Yugi's head and disappeared from the room, leaving Yugi alone.

"It _is _for the best."

A single tear fell from Yugi's eye, already mourning for his hopeful victory, the departure of the pharaoh and the destruction of the copy of the Thief King.

* * *

**This short story is based on the end of episode 220, before Atem and Yugi would have their final duel.**

**It turned out better than what I thought, and _way_ better than what it first was.**

**I am most definately going to re-edit this, when I get the time, so it would help a bunch if you tell me what you think and if you have any suggestions.**


End file.
